Left Handed Deal Sealer
by Mauzzsi
Summary: Optimus would've opted for the more traditional right handed hand shake but Megatron's hand was eying his fingers hungrily. Megatron/Optimus if you try hard. BW


Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers or anything associated with it.

**Title**: Left Handed Deal Sealer  
**Rating**: T  
**Universe**: Beast Wars  
**Pairing**: Optimus/Megatron slightly  
**Word Count**: 2,022

Done for a Live Journal fic contest.

* * *

Something about the sky on this primitive planet made Optimus feel uneasy, especially at night. It was so different from Cybertron, no colossal buildings blocking out the horizon or constant traffic and chatter from the nocturnal population. Silence, never ending silence and coldness that made him feel free and vulnerable was all there was to fill the void. The stars were so vibrant, no artificial lights to take their place. They stared down at him in an accusatory way, knowing he did not belong in this untouched paradise.

He hurried along, jet packs pushing him forward, the Axalon was distant from view now, only a spec in it's awkward resting position. Earlier that night he had received a very surprising transmission from his arch enemy, calling, demanding, begging him to come to a predetermined location, alone, without telling any of his crew. Only a few words had been uttered before the signal died.

Megatron was a Predacon, a descendant of the once powerful Decepticon race. Decepticon was 'deception' with an additional letter, Optimus knew this for as long as he knew how to use his CPU. And he also remembered Megatron's little planned disaster that was short of a deca-cycle ago, which he had all played them for fools in faking his and his crews' destruction at the result of their own petty squabbling.

However something within him urged him forward despite his logic circuits screaming 'trap'. Optimus felt that sometimes it was better to follow feelings based on one's spark rather than one's motherboard. That entire philosophy was what kept him going, but that wasn't to say he hadn't come armed or without a plan of escape if things did take a turn for the worst.

He reached the location that had been shot across the short transmission in a small signal packet. It was a mountain range, and he could feel his systems slightly tingle, a mountain range filled with energon. Often had large regions of energon disrupted many of their scanners, particularly ones in finding a specific signature.

He landed and quickly transformed into beast mode. There was a large tree growing up from the side of a rock, it's roots forcing their way through the stone to hold itself upright. It was one of the trees that Rhinox had dubbed an 'umbrella' tree, because of it's thin trunk and wide canopy that spread out in all directions.

A large mound of purple decepticon leader lay under the tree, apparently in recharge. Megatron had several large gashes across his left flank that sorely reminded Optimus of the time when Megatron had given his own leg a very sound thrashing and torn off the organic compounds. He increased the range of his optics and did a quick observational diagnostic. The artificial skin had been torn off in three large chunks and energon fluid was leaking onto the ground, causing the small patches of grass that it touched to wither and die.

Optimus kept his distance, for all he knew Megatron was just waiting for him to get close and then give him one good bite on the neck, then it'd be all over.

"Megatron!" Optimus called, voice raised, the Tyrannosaur twitched and opened his eyes, observing the autobot from afar.

"Didn't think you'd come, Optimus Primal." Megatron said, still managing to smirk somehow with obvious pain creasing across his features.

"Neither did I Megatron, now mind telling me why you wanted to see me so badly?" Right now the best thing was not to ask about the wound, if Megatron wanted to inform him about it he would.

"A bargain if you will." Megatron said, he did not try to get up to face Optimus, rather he lifted his head to speak and stayed laying under the tree.

"Forgive me if I don't completely trust you Megatron, my spark says yes but my logic circuits say no." Optimus deadpanned. The decepticon was not so amused by his sarcasm.

"You'll just have to, Primal, for now." Megatron growled, "My troops, namely Tarantulas and Terrorsaur, have betrayed me...they see me unfit to be the Predacon leader." at the last statement Optimus had to bite back the urge to say some quick witted remark, but sometimes it just didn't pay to be like Rattrap. "Skorponok was motivated to join them out of fear...and I don't know what happened to Waspinator."

"I guess loyalty has it's limits." Optimus said coolly. "Now explain how this concerns me."

Megatron's air vents whirred uncertainly as he hitched slightly before speaking, "Tarantulas and Terrorsaur are idiots, the both of them, yesss. Tarantulas is ignorant to the Predacon cause while Terrorsaur will do anything to get his grubby little hands on power, no matter what reprecussions he might face, or who he might hurt."

"Sounds an awful lot like a Predacon I know."

"I'll let that comment slide for now, Primal. All I ask is...a little..." Megatron struggled with the next word, obviously one very foreign to his vocabulary, "...help."

Optimus was about to say something before Megatron interrupted him, "What if Tarantulas turns the Darksyde's defensive guns to offensive? What if Terrorsaur finds another stockpile of energon and decides to go for a little demolition spree? Who's to stop them from doing something as stupid as it is dangerous?"

"As much as it pains me to admit this you do have a point, Megatron. But what will you do if I do agree to help you? Just go back to fighting over crashed stasis pods and energon deposits? Surely a Predacon like yourself can at least give credit where credit is due." Primal bargained, he was willing to fight alongside Megatron if it meant the safety of his crew and this planet's well being.

Megatron came up with the quickest and most believable lie he could on such short notice, "I will...discuss with you further means of peaceful compromizes. If I am made leader again, that is."

"As a Maximal it is my duty to give peace a chance." Optimus transformed, and outstretched his right hand to seal the deal. Megatron looked at him as if he was two cubes short of an energon ration.

"...what is that?" Megatron asked, looking at Optimus' gesture, the Maximal slightly lowered his hand.

"It's a uh...gesture of agreement within Maximal culture. When a deal is agreed upon between business partners or commanders, there is usually a handshake involved at the end of the transaction."

Megatron scoffed, but he still forced himself to stand, his left leg crackling slightly as he attempted to put the least amount of weight on it.

"Megatron, don't concern yourself with it, I-" but Megatron ignored him and attempted to supress a groan of pain as he transformed, the damage much more extensive in his robot mode. He leaned against the tree, scarlet eyes dimmed as he tried to conserve power. The tail on his left arm flipped backwards and folded, revealing his seldom seen hand. Optimus approached him tried to figure out what was wrong with his current standing before realizing he had to switch hands himself.

The handshake was awkward, Megatron's hand was limp and Optimus practically led him through the three quick shakes before Megatron suddenly went rigid then collapsed, energon fluid still leaking from his extensive leg wound. Optimus caught him before he hit the ground. Megatron was lighter than the maximal would've assumed, if only slightly.

For reasons he couldn't explain, or perhaps some desperate attempt to fill the silence, Optimus mentioned his internal thoughts, "You're lighter than I expected."

Megatron managed to reply. "Why thank you Optimus, I've been attempting to cut down on the Energon snacks. A second on the lips, a lifetime on the hips, you know."

"So what happened?" Optimus asked, he already felt somewhat more comfortable with Megatron, perhaps it was because he was injured, or maybe because of the former leader's humorous attempt to make a bad situation better.

"I was outlining a new map grid when Terrorsaur struck me, I fell and my leg caught on one of the floating platform handles before it snapped from the pressure. Handle bar pipes being shoved into my inner thigh was only half the fun."

"What was the other half?" Optimus asked flatly as he measured the wound, it reached down from the middle of Megatron's left inner thigh to his ankle joint.

"Pulling them out. I'd probably still have a lot more Energon if I hadn't, but I needed to run." Megatron figured. He was no fool, three predacons against one weren't very good odds, even if he was their leader.

"I'll need to transport you back to base. This damage is too extensive for my to repair out here, Rhinox will have to do it." Optimus said, transforming back into beast mode and standing beside Megatron.

"You'll do no such thing!" Megatron's eyes flashed to accentuate his point, "I am not going to be in the same living space as the traitor, the rodent and that thing you call a feline, or whatever he is. I still have my-" but Megatron reeled as Energon began to overload his circuits.

"Transform!" Optimus ordered, but Megatron's body began to prepare itself for emergency stasis lock.

"Stasis Lock, imminent." a computerized voice from Megatron's internal systems announced. He continued to attempt to override it, but the lack of energon fluids prevented his systems from working quick enough to continuously deny the claim to submit to stasis lock.

Megatron tried to say something to Primal, but he let out a painful rattle as his vents offlined and he went limp, only the most basic systems still online.

Optimus observed Megatron with some sympathy, if only a passing thought. Being given the name of the most famous and successful decepticon leader probably raised many other 'cons expectations of him to preposterous heights. Optimus had known instantly that Megatron was at least an upper breed of predacon, with more decepticon style mannerisms, way of thinking and appearance. It was the ex-leader's voice that gave him away. Smooth and cool and with no animalistic skwaks or buzzes. That was what set him apart from the others, Optimus figured as he waited for his organic form to filter out the excess energon collected from being in robot mode.

No matter how many predacons he led or associated with, Megatron would always be considered a decepticon in Optimus' mind, not just because of voice and mannerisms, but as well as his warfare. Optimus did have reason to fear Tarantulas and Terrorsaur being in charge, they were volatile, violent, and the most dangerous thing of all, idiots. While Megatron surely wasn't the sharpest tool in the Cybertron shed, he knew when to say retreat, he knew when enough was enough, and he knew when combining forces was beneficial. Sometimes.

The sun began to rise on the horizon, and Optimus transformed. Lifting Megatron into his arms, he began to activate his jetpack. It sputtered and refused to lift him more than ten feet off the ground, and leaning forward only made him decelerate.

"Estimate time of arrival to Axalon by foot." he told his internal processor. On his visual display it measured the time it would take, adding in the time he would have to return to beast mode to filter out the excess energon, as well as Megatron's added weight. He was too far from the Axalon to transmit communications.

"ETA to Axalon by foot; 3 Mega-Cycles." his computer replied to him. Primal lowered himself down and and looked at Megatron's still form, the Predacon was handsome, and would be much more handsome if Optimus didn't have to carry him all the way back to the base.

* * *


End file.
